I was born in Tacoma in December of 1939, making me 75 years old. My first home was with my parents, Italian immigrant grandparents, and my four maternal uncles. Italian was my first language. My grandfather used to say, “Quando si passa quarant’ anni, la vita e nelle divine mani,” meaning, “When you pass 40 years [of age], your life is in the hands of God.” I passed that landmark 35 years ago. Of course, in his time, the average life expectancy was only 60, whereas now it’s pushing 80. The extended longevity of Americans illustrates how far we have advanced in living to and having meaningful “golden years,” since my grandfather’s time. Throughout history, many figures have lived a very long time and continued to be productive well into their older age. Michelangelo, the famous sculptor and painter, created art well into his 80s. He died three weeks short of his 89th birthday. His last sculpture, Rondanini Pietà, was left unfinished, as he died before its completion. At age 87, he is quoted as saying, “Ancora imparo,” I am still learning. There are many examples of people being productive into their twilight years. Ben Franklin invented bifocals at age 78 and signed the United States Constitution at 81. Frank Lloyd Wright worked on the Guggenheim Museum into his 90’s. Most of the structures built from his designs are still standing to this day. Pablo Picasso was painting into his 90’s. His last well known work, Self Portrait Facing Death, was completed a year before he died. It’s said that he painted up to just hours before his death. Grandma Moses last work, Making Horseshoes, was painted the year she died, when she was 101 years old. George Bernard Shaw wrote from the time he was 36 to 94 years old. He wrote up until his death in 1950. In 2014, Tony Bennett at almost 90 years of age, released with Lady Gaga titled Cheek to Cheek.In modern societies, the increased average of life expectancy, and the decrease in the birth rate, has created an unprecedented demographic transition. The age pyramid that existed when I was born has literally been turned upside down. With the Baby Boomers reaching their twilight years, the number of older people is rapidly increasing; the number of young, decreasing. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Americans 65 and older make up about 13% of the population. In 1930 that number was 5.4%. With the larger population, the elderly have more opportunity to be heard and have knowledge and experience of considerable value. I have been a lawyer for 46 years. At 75, I think it’s time to plan the rest of my life, keeping in mind the role models mentioned above. My goal is to find a way to enhance the lives of those around me, lend a hand to those who need it, and to be a good citizen in our community. I’d also like to find ways to improve and enrich my own life because, like, Michelangelo, I am still learning.

I was born on December 11, 1939 into an immigrant Italian household in Tacoma, Washington. World War II was in its first weeks. Hitler was running wild in Europe. Italy, his willing partner. Japan made noise China and the Pacific.On December 7, 1941, the Japanese hit Pearl Harbor. On my second birthday, four days later, Germany and Italy, my family’s native homeland, declared war on the United States. My grandparents had to declare themselves as ”enemy aliens,” despite the fact that they sent three sons to defend our country and possibly fight against their Italian cousins. At 73, I have lived a fairly long time. I muse over some of the terrible things that have happened just in my lifetime. A war that killed 55 million civilians and military combatants; the use of nuclear weapons that destroyed whole cities; genocide by the Nazis; the Communist Chinese and Soviets killing millions of their citizens through force and starvation; a world where bloody conflict was taking place every day since the day I was born; the indiscriminate use of the death penalty in places like China and Iran and, to a lesser degree, the United States also; the massacre of innocents by governments and rebels in places like Rwanda and Bosnia; madmen who have had access to firearms killing children and other innocents; governmental and religious killings in the 21st century in Syria, Angola, Afghanistan, and other places; a wave of terrorism by religious fanatics, which led to the deaths of 3,000 innocent Americans on September 11, 2001; continued hatred among peoples of different colors.In the sixties there was a song that had a line, “When will they ever learn….” Not in my lifetime. And now we have witnessed the birth of the future King, George VII, in England. With normal life expectancies, he will rule into the 22nd Century. By the end of his rule, I wonder if they still have never learned.